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Shushu embarrassed by own failure to account

It comes as no surprise that the MEC for Agriculture has forced his spokesperson to mislead the public. It is clear that the MEC is embarrassed by his failure to account, as he should be. Now that the DA has exposed him for failing to do his job, he is lashing out in shame. We invite the MEC and anyone who so wishes, to come inspect our records. It will show that, out of eleven questions for written reply that was sent to the MEC between July and October 2014, Norman Shushu has failed to respond to a single one. It is not, as the spokesperson says, an issue of questions not being answered fully. It’s an issue of questions not being answered at all. The MEC’s reluctance to answer hard questions shows that all is definitely not well within the department.

It is clear that Taaiboschdraai is a very sensitive issue. Our representative did ask a question for oral reply on the issue previously and we did follow up on the matter earlier this year. In the spirit of efficient and transparent governance, it is required of MECs to account regularly. Norman Shushu knows this. Ideally, in a functioning government, things happen in four years. The only logical conclusion one can draw from his aggressive behaviour is that he is trying to hide what is happening on that farm.

We also asked about the appointment practices in the department. It has come to our attention that, after the elections, some appointments were made in the department. Were all the positions advertised? We asked all departments about the appointment of senior managers to ensure that due processes were followed.

We also asked about the department’s communication budget for the

2013/14 financial year. While the department was originally allocated

R3.7 million for communications, it spent more than R6.8 million. Why did spending on communications double and does it have something to do with election campaigns being run through the departments?

We asked about vaccine shortages, litigation lodged against the department from African Gate, poultry and honey bee projects at Skeyfontein, the Warrenton Super-Chicken project which has not yet managed to establish itself as a going concern, work on the Onseepkans canal and bird mortalities at Kamfers Dam. Why does Norman Shushu refuse to reply on these matters? What is he trying to hide?